Somali Pirates and International Law
- When?
- Thursday 10 November 2011
- Open to:
- Public, Staff, Students
Since 2008 Somali piracy has seized headlines, the public imagination and international concern. In the period since then the UN Security Council has passed more resolutions on piracy than terrorism. While it is sometimes said pirates are not being prosecuted, simply released, over 1000 are in prisons around the world. This talk will explore the international response to piracy and the role international law does (and does not) play in shaping that response.
Dr Douglas Guilfoyle is a Senior Lecturer at University College London where he has taught in public international law (especially law of the sea and international criminal law) since 2007. Douglas regularly gives talks on law of the sea issues, especially matters relating to high-seas piracy, continental shelf claims and the use of force at sea. Since 2009 he has participated in the legal issues working group of the Contact Group on Piracy off Somalia and is presently a special advisor to the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee inquiry into Somali piracy. His book, Shipping Interdiction and the Law of the Sea, was published by Cambridge University Press in 2009.
The presentation slides are available here: http://prezi.com/wo4zyrlcw37h/somali-pirates-and-international-law/.
The statistics referred to in the presentation are available here: http://www.icc-ccs.org/piracy-reporting-centre/piracynewsafigures
